


Broken Family

by Redbirdblackdog



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Babies, F/M, Happy Ending, Hospitals, Married Couple, Married Life, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:16:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23305183
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Redbirdblackdog/pseuds/Redbirdblackdog
Summary: It takes him a minute to meet her eyes. When he does he looks nervous, ashamed, broken. She’s afraid to know, she takes a deep breath to prepare herself and tries her best not to imagine what he will say. What scared her husband so.“They... they said,” he shakes his head.She closes her eyes and takes another deep breath. She opens her eyes again and looks into his gray eyes. It’s Sandor, it’s her husband, trust him. She squeezes his hand and nods.
Relationships: Sandor Clegane & Sansa Stark, Sandor Clegane/Sansa Stark
Comments: 22
Kudos: 130





	1. Broken Family

Sansa looks down at her ringing phone... unknown number, she rolls her eyes. 

“Telemarketers,” she mumbles under her breath. “Hello...” shes trying to hide the annoyance in her voice. 

“May I speak with Mr Sandor Clegane,” the voice on the other side states. 

She rolls her eyes, if they don’t have her husbands number why would he want to talk to them. “Who’s calling,” she asks with a smile trying to keep her voice from sounding curt. 

“It’s Lannisport Memorial Hosptal.” Sansa thinks quickly accounting for each of her children in her head. She’s now able to take a breath. “This is his wife Mrs Clegane.”

“I’m sorry miss I need to speak to Mr Clegane.” 

“Ok,” she pauses, “just a minute, I’ll get him.”

Sansa hurries down the hallway to the office. He’s on the phone when she walks in, likely work. She catches his attention as she enters holding up her phone, she makes a motion across her neck to cut the phone call, his eyebrows just raise in response. 

“Just a sec,” he tells the person on the phone. 

She takes his phone from him and hands him hers. “It’s the hospital,” she says quickly, “they wouldn’t talk to me.”

He puts the phone to his ear, hesitantly he says, “this is Mr Clegane.”

She turns away and puts his phone to her ear and quietly says, “I’m sorry, Mr Clegane has to step away on an-“ 

“Love, this is Bronn, what’s up,” his voice smooth. 

“I don’t know. It’s the hospital. They won’t tell me. I got to go,” she quickly says clicking off the phone. 

She turns back toward Sandor and the look on his face makes her nervous. She reaches out and squeezes his hand resting on the desk. Watching as he speaks to the person on the phone trying to understand. 

“Yes,” Sandor says dryly. 

“No, there’s no one else.”

“Uhhh, yes I have children,” he squeezes her hand back. 

“I understand.”

“No.”

“I’ll have to speak with my wife... yes I understand.” He mumbles. 

“Lannisport Memorial.”

“Laura Mathews, 206-445-1234.”

“Thank you,” his voice just above a whisper as ends the call. 

It takes him a minute to meet he eyes. When he does he looks nervous, ashamed, broken. She’s afraid to know, she takes a deep breath to prepare herself and tries her best not to imagine what he will say. What scared her husband so. 

“They... they said,” he shakes his head. 

She closes her eyes and takes another deep breath. She opens her eyes again and looks into his gray eyes. It’s Sandor, it’s her husband, trust him. She squeezes his hand and nods. 

“Gregor is dead,” he says just over a whisper. She watches him take a deep breath now. “He was shot, by his girlfriend... he beat her, beat her badly. She died.” 

She squeezes his hand again, “oh my Gods honey.”

He closes he eyes and squeezes her hand back shaking his head. “There’s more. She... she was pregnant...” 

Sansa let’s out an audible gasp.

“She was pregnant with twins,” he took another breath. “They saved the babies, but they don’t have anyone. Her family’s a mess-“

“We’ll take them,” Sansa states with certainty. She squeezes his hand one more time and exchanges phones with him. She picks a contact on her phone and hits send.

“Sansa-“ Sandor says. 

She holds one finger up to him. “Arya, I have an emergency I need you now,” she speaks simply, “no, now,” and promptly hangs up.

“Little Bird l...” he sputters. 

She steps in front of him and holds his face in her hands. “They are family,” she whispers and kisses his lips. 

“But-“

“No, they are family,” she whispers again meeting his eyes with hers. “They are family. We will take them. We will love them,” she states it as a matter of fact. 

He nods back at her and wraps his arms around her pulling her onto his lap. She kisses his jaw as he holds her tight. 

He leans down and whispers in her ear, “is it awful if I’m glad he’s dead.” 

“No baby,” she whispers back. “He’ll never hurt anyone again.” 

She kisses his lips and then untangles herself from his arms. She pulls out a drawer in the desk and pulls out a Manila envelope setting it in front of him, she moves to the file cabinet and pulls out papers making a stack which she slides into the envelope. 

“You bring your drivers license and passport. I don’t know what information they'll want,” she states. “Be ready in 15 minutes I’m going to pack a bag,” then she turns to leave. 

“Little Bird?” He questions. 

She turns toward him in the doorway and he knows that look. The kids and her sister get that look, he joking refers to it as the ‘don’t fuck with mom’ look. 

“Sandor, they are our family. They will not spend their first day of life in a hospital alone.” She turns and walks away. 


	2. Keeping Score

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sansa smiles and nods, “Can I meet them,” she asks Gilly. “I... I don’t even know if they’re girls or boys.”
> 
> It catches his breath, boys. What if they were boys, what if they are just like his brother? His breath stutters. Can he bring them home to his family. He nods his head as he enters the room but he can’t hear anything the woman says. So he just holds on, he holds on to Sansa’s hand.

The hospital is an hour away, he makes the drive in 45 minutes. Now he’s there staring at the sign, Neonatal Intensive Care. He takes a deep breath and tries to swallow his nervousness. 

Sansa’s a whirlwind, she introduces herself to the charge nurse and asks for the social worker. She hands the social worker a stack of papers. Documents verifing who they are, Drivers licenses, passports, birth certificates and even their marriage license. She hands over a list of fifteen names they can call as a references, right now if needed, more upon request. Information on their pediatrician who has cared for all four of their children since birth and his home number. She brought financial records verifing their income and employment. Proof of residence and the deed to their home. The social worker looks impressed. 

Sandor shrugs and says, “She probably should’ve been a lawyer.” 

“This should be enough to start, definitely,” Laura the social worker states. “I’ll make copies and get this back to you. There will likely be a court date Tuesday or Wednesday.”

“No problem,” Sansa replies. She looks up at him briefly and squeezes his hand. 

“There will be a home visit to check the home and family,” Laura says. 

“Of course, whatever you need,” Sansa replies. “Can I see them? Can I stay? I don’t want them to be alone.”

“Yes, you will need to get a bracelet from the charge nurse identifying you as family so you can visit,” she leads them over to the nurse station. They get bands. “They’re through here, in room 4,” Laura says. 

“Can you tell me about them,” Sansa asks.

“I can’t really tell you about their mother, more then you already know,” Laura answers. “They were born this morning, there was a lot of bleeding but they have not needed a blood transfusion...” 

Sansa clutches his hand tighter. 

“Oh, here is their nurse Gilly, she can tell you more,” Laura said. “Gilly this is Mr and Mrs Clegane they are petitioning for custody of the twins in room 4.”

“Please, this way,” Gilly directs. “You have to use the hand sanitizer before you enter the room, showing the bottle hanging bye the door. Also every time you go from clean to dirty... change a diaper, wash hands. Touch the floor, wash hands. I like to think of it like if you wouldn’t pick up a sandwich and eat it after you do something don’t touch that baby till you wash up.”

Sansa smiles and nods, “Can I meet them,” she asks Gilly. “I... I don’t even know if they’re girls or boys.”

It catches his breath, boys. What if they were boys, what if they are just like his brother? His breath stutters. Can he bring them home to his family. He nods his head as he enters the room but he can’t hear anything the woman says. So he just holds on, he holds on to Sansa’s hand.

“Oh, one of each,” Gilly replies. “Baby 1 is a girl and baby 2 is a boy. Handsome children really, dark eyes and dark hair.”

Sansa looks into the strange baby bed at the little girl and her hand goes over her heart. “She looks so small, can I touch her?” 

“Yes, of course,” Gilly replies. “They came early, we think about 35 or 36 weeks gestation. They’ve done well though today, for having a rough start.”

He watches as Sansa brushes her hand gently across the baby’s temple and her face lights up with a smile. He sees her eyes get all glassy and watches as she tries to blink back her tears. He just holds her hand and looks over her shoulder at the tiny baby wrapped in pink. 

“This little guy needed a little help to breathe at first, but he’s doing well on his own now.” 

She said he, a boy. His vision narrows to the tiny little lump wrapped in green. He closes his eyes but it’s still there when he opens them. The nurse is still talking but all he can do is watch the tiny little bundle. 

“Their blood sugars are good and they’re staying warm,” the nurse continues. “No sign of infection and there labs look good. We sent off drug screens just in case then we know if we need to watch for withdrawal symptoms.” 

Sansa approaches the boys crib, “they’re beautiful Sandor.” She strokes her fingertips through his thin dark hair. He just holds on, it’s all he can do. 

“Overall they look good, just need to learn to feed well and gain weight. Baring any unforeseen problems they should be ready to discharge by their due date, about a month, maybe sooner.”

“The babies have cords coming out of their wraps measuring their heart rate, breathing and oxygen levels. I can see these vitals from any room I’m in and all the nursing stations. I’ll be able to help you learn how to handle them if you’d like, Gilly offers. 

“Yes please,” Sansa replies. “I plan on staying overnight.”

“Great, their feeds and cares will start in about 15 minutes, I’ll be back then.”

“Sandor,” Sansa says tugging on his arm. 

“Mmfff,” it’s all he can get out. His mind is racing a mile a minute. 

“Sandor, baby it’s ok,” she whispers soothingly. “It’s ok to be nervous, it’s ok-“ 

“What if they’re like him,” he interrupts speaking quickly. “What if they’re mean, evil, what if they hurt-“ 

“No,” she replies sternly. Sansa reaches up to hold his face. “No. They are babies, the are tiny and precious. They are the one good thing your brother ever gave you, gave us. They are our family and we are theirs.” 

She kisses his lips then. She reaches for his hand and pulls him with her, over to the boy’s bed. He looks closer at that little bundle, it’s a little baby, not a monster. He doesn’t look like Gregor, he looks like a baby. He looks small... he has rounded cheeks, a small little nose. He looks... innocent. 

Sansa pulls him closer and wraps her arms around him, squeezing him tight. “He’s perfect,” she whispers up to him. “He’s ours.” 

“Ok Little Bird,” he agrees. He feels his shoulders relax and the strain relax from his body. 

Gilly, the nurse comes back in and fiddles with the little girl, she seems intent on laying her eyes on every inch of her. Sansa is right there with her. Gilly shows her how to work around the cords to change the baby’s diaper. Sansa settles into the chair with the baby and Gilly shows her how to feed a premie with the bottle. 

He watches closely as Sansa takes to the baby like one of her own. Sansa burps the little and stands rocking the baby in her arms. She staring lovingly at the baby seeming to memorize the moment. 

“Do you want to help me with the little man,” Gilly asks Sansa. 

“No, I’m quite content,” Sansa replies sweetly in the voice she reserves for babies and puppies. She looks up into his eyes, “Sandor will do it.” Accompanied by the ‘Don’t fuck with mom’ look he’s now seen twice today. 

He feels his eyes go a little wide and his heart skip a beat. Sansa just nods at him, voicing her demand with a look. 

“A... of course,” he whispers to his wife. 

He watches as Gilly gathers supplies and unwraps the baby. He’s just a tiny little thing, smaller then any of their children ever were. He watches as Gilly looks over the baby and the little thing cries in protest. Then she hands him the diaper. 

“You need help,” Gilly asks?

He looks over at Sansa softly singing to the baby. 

“Nah, I got it,” he replies with more confidence then he feels. He slides the tiny diaper under the little guys rear, starts to unfasten the closures and peel back the diaper. 

“Whoops,” he startles closing it back up to catch a little stream of pee. “Hey little man don’t pee on me,” he jokes back. His eyes dart to Sansa and she smiles back at him. He smiles back and takes a deep breath, “ok little man lets get you cleaned up.” He quickly changes the diaper, washes his hands just like Gilly said. He feeds the baby and burps him, now he’s just holding him watching him sleep. 

“Sandor,” he looks up as Sansa stands and makes her way over to him. “Here you go,” she says placing the little girl in his free arm. 

“Hey little woman,” he whispers. He can’t help but look back and forth between the two little cherubs in his arms. 

Sansa leans over and kisses him on his cheek. 

“You were right,” he admits. 

She laughs quietly, “of course I was silly man.”

“Oh, oh... I got it,” Sansa says trying to whisper and starts scrolling through her phone. 

“What,” he asks. 

“Their song, I got it,” she replies scrolling through her Spotify. 

He nods back at her and turns back to the bundles on his arms. Each of the Clegane children have a song, a song Sansa picked on the day they were born and forever commemorates the moment. 

“Here,” she hits plays but turns the volume down halfway. Then she starts singing along. 

Someday we’re going to look back  
On a night like tonight  
The car I pulled up in  
The necklace you’re wearing  
Won’t even cross our minds  
Someday we’re going blink twice  
They say it happens like that  
How much money we saved up  
For the time that we gave up  
It will all just be math

I know I’m only human  
Don’t know how many sunsets I got left  
And I don’t want to ruin  
This moment by wondering what comes next 

I just want to love you  
Like it’s all I’m living for  
Hold you close, enjoy you more  
And spend a little less time keeping score 

Sansa hits pause on the song, she looks a little misty-eyed. “So what do you think,” she whispers?

“Perfect,” he whispers, “it’s just perfect Little Bird.”

“Perfect,” she agrees stroking the little boy’s hair and kissing Sandor on the cheek.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ‘Keeping Score’ by Dan & Shay, featuring Kelly Carlson. Not really my favorite artists personally, but a beautiful song. 
> 
> AdultOrphan made a great comment about how worried Sandor would be about children born from his brother... I ran with it. 
> 
> Thanks for reading. I did angst!!!
> 
> Thanks to GRRM for characters I bend to my will.

**Author's Note:**

> So I got this little idea and ran with it. I don’t like the title but ehh. One more chapter... all good things. I plan to finish it today or tomorrow.


End file.
